SMS Pro Aviation Safety Software Blog 4 Airlines & Airports

Hazard Reporting Process Is for More than Just Hazards

The idea of “hazard reporting” is a bit inaccurate because employees should be reporting more than just hazards.

Hazards are just one type of concern that employees should report. When we are talking about hazard reporting, what we are really talking about is “issue reporting.”

Issue reporting includes many levels of concerns, such as:

• Identified root causes in the operational environment;
• Hazardous sources and other potentially dangerous conditions;

What Is Reactive Risk Management in Aviation SMS

Reactive risk management in aviation SMS is a technique that, mainly, involves the ability to respond to safety issues (or other types of issues, such as compliance, quality, etc.).

Reactive management is a response based approach to risk.

Practically, this means that anytime managers or front-line employees respond to an active threat in the operational environment (front-line employees)

Best Safety Risk Management Practices for Aviation Maintenance

In aviation maintenance, as in all other aspects of the aviation sector, safety is paramount. Four safety management practices that can be applied to make any maintenance operation safer are:

1. use of tangible aviation safety metrics to measure effectiveness,
2. open communication between management and operational employees,
3. continuous improvement (CI), and

How to Manage High Levels of Risk Effectively

As the former Commander of the International Space Station, it is not surprising that in interviews, Chris Hadfield often stresses the importance of effective risk management. Whether for career or pleasure, every aviator experiences a considerable level of risk. This is epitomized by the life of this former astronaut.

Nothing but the thin walls of a pressurized enclosure, hurtling through space at unimaginable speeds, lay between his small team onboard the space station and the cold eternity of space. In such circumstances, one small mistake could mean the difference between life and death.

What Is Management of Change in Aviation SMS

Management of change in aviation SMS is a formal process for implementing system-level changes in aviation SMS programs.

By system-level, we are talking about a change that is significant enough to affect the design of your SMS.

Small changes only affect one small part of your SMS, such as single risk control, and are implemented with corrective-preventative actions (CPAs). System changes are a higher level of change that affects multiple areas of operations.

What Is an SMS Operational Risk Profile (ORP)

Under the umbrella of many SMS compliance agencies, an operational risk profile (ORP) is a requirement that is the core of your hazard, risk, and control measure accountability. That’s another way of saying that all risk mitigation “resources” are identified in your ORP.

But what are risk mitigation “resources?” These are any elements that are relevant to risk exposure and risk reduction. Resources can be:

• Knowledge;
• Budgets;

What Are Safety Reports in SMS Programs?

Safety reports in SMS programs are your primary weapon for communicating safety information to stakeholders. Safety information will be catered to stakeholders.

Stakeholders are simply anyone who you need to communicate safety information to, such as:

• Upper management;
• Investors;
• Employees;
• Internal safety team;

The Multiple Faces of What Risk Is

The layperson's perception and understanding of risk is something that tends to make aviation safety professionals slightly indignant. In order to be successful in the aviation safety field, safety managers must intimately understand the core elements affecting operational safety, including:

• Equipment;
• Manpower; and
• Environment.

What It Means to Practice Reactive, Proactive, and Predictive Risk Management

If you want to practice reactive, proactive, and predictive risk management in aviation safety management systems (SMS), you first and foremost need to understand the difference between these types of risk management in modern aviation operations.

Understanding what each type of risk management is does not involve just understanding the “conceptual” difference, but how each practice differs in the actual operational environment.

FAA’s Safety Risk Management (SRM) Process for Risk Analysis

Thankfully, the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) SRM compliance requirement for Risk Analysis is fairly clear.

The "Risk Analysis" component description in the Advisory Circular provides most of the information you need to fulfill the requirement.